Third annual ‘Crawl to the Cure’ is a family affair

Enjoying the Crawl to a Cure is a family affair for Jane Snyder, left, her daughter Sandy Jeffers and her niece Phyllis Byrne. The three women have all been affected by breast cancer.

The low-lit interior of Corks on the Calhoun Street Promenade could not dim the florescent pink rings encircling a number of necks.

The glow light neck wear was part of the attire for registered participants in the third annual LoCo Crawl to the Cure that rocked a number of Old Town establishments.

Carolina Cups, a local non-profit breast cancer charity, was founded three years ago by Bluffton resident Laura Morgan. It is dedicated to funding breast cancer education, prevention, screening and treatment for Lowcountry residents.

The evening event began officially at 4 p.m., although Cups vicechair Elizabeth Renfroe said people were lined up at 3:30 p.m.

Inside Corks, a trio of women were enjoying some beverages and conversation.

Jane Snyder, her daughter Sandy Jeffers and her niece Phyllis Byrne were together to celebrate Snyder’s 95th birthday. They each had plenty of reasons to support the crawl.

Byrne said she began losing friends when she was 40 and both her sister-in-law and niece had breast cancer. Jeffers said she has lost many friends to the disease and her mother, who was Snyder’s older sister, died from breast cancer.

“She was diagnosed when she was 80,” Jeffers said and then laughed. “She was so indignant. How could she possibly have cancer, was her thinking. She was mad.”

Jeffers said her mother only had radiation.

“She wasn’t going to have anything that made her nauseous,” she said, “and she lived until she was 93. At 92, she began to get the aches and pains again and by the time it was diagnosed the cancer was in every bone in her body.”

Snyder, who said she only takes vitamins and walks, said she used to play a lot of golf until her husband passed away last year.

“But she walks,” Byrne said. “She can walk circles around us.”

Outside in the bright sun, another was heading to another destination on their crawl. They clearly belonged together because five out of six of them were wearing purple T-shirts with martini glasses on them and the sixth sported bright pink boas.

For Kathy and David Benge, it’s personal.

“I lost my mother to breast cancer,” said David.

“My sister is a breast cancer survivor now for two months,” said Kathy.

Proceeds will go to the Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina, Beaufort Memorial Hospital Keyserling Cancer Center, Beaufort Jasper Comprehensive Health Services, the Mayo Clinic and Northside Hospital.